Fracture behavior and mechanical properties of concrete with artificial lightweight aggregate and steel fiber

摘要

In this study, the mechanical and fracture properties of steel fiber (SF) reinforced cold bonded fly ash lightweight aggregate concretes (LWACs) were experimentally investigated. The LWACs were produced with constant water-to-cement ratio of 0.40 and two different volume fractions of lightweight coarse aggregates (LWCA). Three types of hooked-end SFs with aspect ratios of 55, 65, and 80 were utilized 0.35%, 0.70%, 1.00%, and 1.50% of concrete volume. Effectiveness of aspect ratio, SF volume fraction, and LWCA content on the compressive, splitting, and flexural strengths as well as the modulus of elasticity, fracture energy and characteristic length of the concrete were investigated at the end of 28-days of water curing. Test results revealed that the utilization of SF crucially enhanced the splitting tensile and flexural strengths, fracture energy and characteristic length. The compressive strength, however, were not affected considerably by SF addition. Moreover, the concrete properties mentioned above were significantly influenced by artificial fly ash LWCA content. (C) 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.